‘A third of children in the UK use blogs and social network websites but two thirds of parents do not even know what they are, a survey suggests.’

The BBC reported today on the topic of social networking and personal publishing sites that children are using and highlighted the fact that parents do not even know that this technology exists. This is a really important issue for internet safety and highlights that Parents need information about emerging technologies and ways to use them safely, so that they can work with their children to help them act responsibly and safely online.

The article reported some staggering facts:

Even when parents had put controls on what youngsters could access, almost half the 1,003 children aged 11 to 16 surveyed said they could disable them.

A tenth of the 11-year-olds who took part in the survey said their parents did not know about the people with whom they communicated online.

This is an issue that needs addressing because at the moment, parents are not aware of what their children are getting up to online and often children are putting themselves inadvertantly at risk.